Hi all - Any suggestions on rectifying a problem where the clutch won't disengage? The problem is that when I depress the clutch pedal with the engine running, I can not get the trans in gear.

Regarding removing slop from the linkage, I found some good information here: https://www.northamericanmotoring.co...ghlight=clutch but that doesn't solve my problem.

The hydraulics have been bled, and the throwout arm stop is adjusted w/ .020" as the FSM states. The throwout stop is adjusted per the FSM as well. I get what I would consider reasonable pedal movement, with the pedal throw stopping before the floor, resulting in the slave cyl. pushrod moving about 1".

FYI, a new clutch was installed by the previous owner and it worked correctly for 'a while' before it no longer disengaged. There are no dowel in the clutch housing, which makes me think the previous owner didn't use the service tool to center the clutch housing correctly on the shaft. Not sure if that would cause this problem, but it's info nonetheless.

Any suggestions would be helpful. Cheers,
Jeff

 

I had that problem once. It turned out that the bolts holding the clutch to the flywheel came out, preventing me from getting the car in gear with it running. Previous person who installed the clutch didn't use locktite. But it did make a rattling noise for a little bit before it happened.

 

Are you sure the MC & slave are good? Pull the dust boot off the slave and see if it is wet inside. If so, replace. Sometimes the MC can be bad and leak pressure back internally. If it leaks externally, it will drip down the pedal shaft. Take a flashlight and inspect.

Are all the pivot pins in good shape? Many times motion is lost because the pins at the MC/pedal and the slave rod to T/O arm are worn & deeply grooved. Surprising, but it can cost enough travel to effect it.

Is the T/O arm okay? Sometimes the pivot point is ovalled or the ball end worn or worse they break off..

It doesn't take much motion of the T/O bearing shaft to disengaged the clutch. It also only takes one or two of these things to cause problems.

Unlike the brake, the clutch pedal should not be "hard" and stop before the floor.

 

Locktite is a good product and would be a great preventative measure as you suggest. The bolts all should be torqued and the factory anti-vibration washers used. I've never had any back out. Just sounds like a hap-hazard installation, unfortunately...

 

Yep, the slave cylinder is new, and is not leaking externally. Both pins are worn as is the throwout arm. I've (temporarily) adjusted out the slop by way of the arm stop, and now the linkage is nice and tight, but I'm sure I've lost some throw as a result. I've got a mechanical rebuild kit on order from MiniMania and that will surely help a lot. I'm concerned mainly since the pedal is hard but stops before contacting the floor (lack of travel?). I'll know more when I get the rebuild kit installed.

 

As soon as I read miniroll's post I figured that is the likely culprit. As eager as the previous owner was to fix things, the vehicle has suffered due to lack of attention to details like this (like the new carb he installed was held on by hand-tight nuts - got vacuum leak?). I'll pull the engine so I can get the clutch housing off and find out for sure.

As always, thanks everyone for the help. Cheers,
Jeff

 

Well I've gotten the clutch housing off of the engine, and surprisingly everything looks fine. Now I'm a bit stumped, as I've replaced all mechanical parts in the clutch linkage with new parts, made sure the hydraulic system is bled, as well as made sure the clutch/flywheel is secured properly.

Anyone have other suggestions? I'm pretty frustrated now as the clutch still doesn't disengage and yet everything *appears* fine. Please take a quick look at the below picture and let me know if anything seems suspicious.

Should I remove the clutch/flywheel and see if there's any lurking problem below the surface? According the the previous owner, this problem surfaced after a new clutch was installed (not immediately after, but some time after being able to successfully drive it after).

Thanks for taking the time to help a new mini owner out,
Jeff

 

There is a procedure for determining the correct height of the spacers under the drive straps. That might be a problem. I'll have to locate it, but it requires removal and setting it on the table to measure.

 

Here's some info:

http://www.minimania.com/web/SCatago...4/ArticleV.cfm


http://www.minimania.com/web/SCatago...6/ArticleV.cfm

http://www.minimania.com/web/SCatago...4/ArticleV.cfm

The clutch pedal should not be hard. The MC may need a rebuild. Sure the slave hose is good internally?

 

Hmmm, when reassembling the clutch housing I swapped out the clutch bearing holder (that the clutch arm end slides into). A previous owner had tightened down the 15/16" nut (oh, and there's no locknut) all the way to the end of the threads. Upon reinstallation I made sure that the nut had enough threads to allow full movement of the clutch arm. I don't get the hard pedal halfway through travel that I used to get.

Perhaps this weekend I can get the engine running again and make sure that I fixed the problem. Hoooray!

Oh, and thanks everyone for all the help and helpful links.

Cheers,
Jeff

 

Be sure to get the 15/16" locknut on. The adj of this nut is important. With clutch held in by assistant, turn nut until it touches the cover. Release pedal. Turn in 1 flat of the nut. Lock in place. Too much travel puts excess pressure on the crank thrust washers and can cause oil starvation there & engine failure (ask me)

 

An update: I *finally* found a solution to my clutch problem. I'm not sure whether this is a bandaid to mask the problem or a correct fix, but it appears to be fixed nonetheless.

I took the brake/clutch pedal assembly out of the mini and found that the location of the pivot pin hole in the clutch pedal looked incorrect (compared to the brake pedal). Two days of work and I relocated the pivot hole on the clutch pedal by welding a strip of 1/4" plate to the top of the clutch pedal (at the master cylinder dowel pin hole) and relocated the hole to the 'correct' position.

I did this on a whim because the clutch pedal always hung about 1-1/2" to 2" closer to the firewall than the brake pedal. Moving the pivot hole up appears to have solved the problem. I drove the mini down the street for the first time today!

Pictures on my gallery @ http://desertwave.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_itemId=5754

I'm glad to have that project behing me .
Jeff